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Porsche 911 GT3 :: what’s new for 2015

• The all-new Porsche GT3 is based off the current 991-series platform that gives the car a wider track and longer wheelbase. Porsche calls it a composite body, using a combination of aluminium down the middle of the car and ultra high-strength steel for the outer skins of rear quarters and roof. The construction is said to draw the best balance between weight and rigidity.


• Porsche says the wider track also helps the GT3 achieve better mechanical traction for higher speeds in the curves.

• The “Mezger” engine is gone – replaced by a 3.8-litre, flat six that produces 350kW and 440Nm of torque. It’s a highly-refined version of the same engine that is found across the current 991 series 911s. It’s also 25 kilos lighter and carries its weight lower in the car.

It stops making power at 8250rpm, but if you need to stretch the rpm to get to the next corner, it will happily spin at 9000rpm.

• In addition to having a revised dry sump tank at the front of the engine (sheds 1.3kg), the GT3 uses a completely different style of valve drive that Porsche hasn’t used before. Previously there were buckets over valves, whereas there are now lightweight arms, which help to keep reciprocating mass down.

• For the first time, there is no manual transmission option for the GT3. Its sole gearbox is a massively revised (and 1.7kg lighter) seven-speed dual-clutch (PDK) unit that has two modes: Sport and Sport+. It will happily auto shift all day, but in manual mode, it won’t shift (up or down) unless the driver uses the paddleshifters.

• Every gear in the PDK has had grams shaved off it, as have the shafts. The improvements combine to provide much faster shift times through less rotating mass.

• It also incorporates a limited-slip diff that is hydraulically controlled inside the PDK that is infinitely variable. It’s a multi-plate unit that can go full lock or wide open.

• The GT3 gets Porsche’s electric power steering system, but again that’s been optimised for the use of the car. So the mechanics in the power steering are Carrera but the electronics are GT3.

• Other subtle improvements have been made to the traditional cast iron braking system with 380mm rotors all-round, with six-piston calipers up front and four down back.

• It also gets the same suspension design, but there’s a new spring that saves another 1.6kg and a new strut housing shaves another 1.6kg.

• The GT3 gets bigger, forged aluminium wheels. At the front are larger diameter wheels, but the same weight. Similarly at the rear, more width, but saving 2.8kg per corner. It’s all about reducing unsprung mass for better response and agility.

• The bigger track, the bigger wheels and the stickier tyres mean that more camber can be dialled into the car with the new design.

• There’s a new Sports exhaust feature, which when activated by a button on the console, not only changes the character of the exhaust to a more aggressive note, but also gives it around 30-35Nm more torque in the mid-range by free-flowing the exhaust.

• New for the 2015 GT3 is a rear-link steering system – or four-wheel steering. It’s the sister system to what’s used on the Posche 911 Turbo, which gives 1.5 degrees of adjustment. At low speed, the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction of the front wheels, effectively shortening the turning circle of the car, while at high speed, they turn in the same direction as the front wheels, which gives it the feel of a car that has a 500mm-longer wheelbase.

• The GT3 also gets newly developed Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres, providing more grip, and shaving up to two seconds off lap times.

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